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(return
to part 1)
Is there a lyrical theme running
through the record?
Yeah. I think it's about brotherhood, and
new beginnings, and searching within yourself to grow as a person,
to come into your own. Each song has its own topic, of course
- some are political, some are personal - but I think a lot of
it is very optimistic, saying that you as a person can rise above,
that we as a people can rise above.
How did the cover songs come
about?
We just had some extra time in the studio,
and Mark [Carpentieri, who owns M.C. Records] was like, "Are
you guys doing anything else?" We rambled through a few
cover tunes, and he liked them. "Fever" is one of those
Chicago blues-rock grooves, kind of a jam. On the Sam Cooke song,
I was doing a lot of duet gigs at the Harlem Avenue lounge outside
of Chicago, which is owned by my booking agent. Every month he
put me with someone new - Studebaker John, John Primer, and then
this guy named Mike Wheeler, who I always liked to hear do that
song. I was like, "Mike, I really want to do that song with
you."
"White Lines" is a jam, too; people
always liked it onstage, so we put it on the CD. I'd been playing
it for years.
Are you a fan of rap music
in general? And do you think blues fans will know the original
version of "White Lines"?
I'm a fan of some of it. I mean, I'm a musician,
and a lot of it's made with computers and samples, so that's
the thing about it I don't like. But my son's 15 and that's all
he listens to, so I get to hear a lot of it.
I don't know if blues fans will know the song.
My son barely knows it, because as one of the original hip-hop
tunes, it's kind of old for him. But anybody that comes to my
show knows they're going to hear a lot more than blues, so they're
prepared for adventure.
(continue
to part 3)
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